Calif. SWAT chief denies dodging deadly raid

By Henry K. Lee San Francisco Chronicle

OAKLAND, Calif. — The Oakland police captain in charge of the department's SWAT and traffic units denied Monday that he had dodged a chance to lead what became an ill-fated raid for the killer of two motorcycle officers, saying that the unit had been in capable hands and that no one had urged him to take over.

Capt. Ed Tracey said he drove straight from his home to Highland Hospital in Oakland on March 21 to be with fellow officers and relatives of Sgt. Mark Dunakin and Officer John Hege, the motorcycle officers who were gunned down by 26-year-old parolee Lovelle Mixon.